Cook, who becomes chief executive on July 1, replacing current head Reuben Mark, also said the company expects gross profit to rise 0.75 percent to 1.25 percent per year, from previous guidance of 0.5 percent and 1 percent.

Also during the meeting, shareholders re-elected eight board members: John T. Cahill, executive chairman of The Pepsi Bottling Group Inc.; Jill K. Conway, a visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Program in Science, Technology and Society; Ellen M. Hancock, president of Jazz Technologies Inc.; David W. Johnson, chairman emeritus of Campbell Soup Co.; Richard J. Kogan, former chief executive of Schering-Plough Corp.; Delano E. Lewis, a senior fellow at New Mexico State University; CEO Reuben Mark; and J. Pedro Reinhard, former chief financial officer of the Dow Chemical Co.

Shareholders also voted to keep PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the company's accountant. In 2006, Colgate paid PWC $14.2 million for audit and tax services.